1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to cutting equipment and more particularly to an apparatus for edging the ends of cut materials.
2. Description of the Prior Art
After a piece of wood, plexiglass, masonite or similar material is rough cut, the edges are typically smoothed to remove the saw marks. In woodworking, the board is run through a jointer. If further finishing is required, an edge sander may be used.
The rough cut edges of a piece of plexiglass are typically smoothed with hand tools. The edges are first scraped with a blade, then sanded with a hand held orbital sander using rough, then fine sandpaper. Manual edging is very time consuming. After the edging, the plexiglass edges are buffed on a buffing machine.
An edging machine manufactured by the Edge Finisher Corporation is commercially available for use with plexiglass. The plexiglass is automatically fed through a specially designed cutter by two drive belts at an adjustable rate of 0-18 ft./min. The spindle speed is 24,000 rpm via a 2 hp phase 60 Hz motor. Three phase electrical power is, therefore, required. The material is passed through the cutter in a vertical plane. Alignment of the piece with the machine is critical because the piece is sitting on its edge. Upright columns are provided to support larger pieces to maintain a 90.degree. angle between the sides and edges of the material. The drive belts on the automatic feed must be adjusted for varying thicknesses of material.
An object of the present invention is to provide an edging apparatus which will significantly reduce the time required for edging as compared to that required for manual edging. A further object of the present invention is to provide an edging apparatus which is simple and inexpensive to construct and operate. Finally, it is an object of the present invention to provide an edging apparatus which promotes ease of alignment of the material to be processed.